About this Book

Book Summary

From one of our most trusted authorities on health and alternative health care, a comprehensive and reassuring book about food, diet, and nutrition.

Building on the scientific and philosophical underpinnings of his enormous bestseller Spontaneous Healing, the body's capacity to heal itself, and presenting the kind of practical information that informed his 8 Weeks to Optimum Health, Dr. Weil now provides us with a program for improving our well-being by making informed choices about how and what we eat. He explains the safest and most effective ways to lose weight; how diet can affect energy and sleep; how foods can exacerbate or minimize specific physical problems; how much fat to include in our diet; what nutrients are in which foods, and much, much more. He makes clear that an optimal diet will both supply the basic needs of the body and fortify the body's defenses and mechanisms of healing. And he provides easy-to-prepare recipes in which the food is as sensually satisfying as it is beneficial.

Eating Well for Optimum Health stands to change - for the better and the healthier - our most fundamental ideas about eating.

Introduction

Throughout this book I have made references to "the optimum diet."

Here I want to summarize its characteristics. The optimum diet should:

supply all of your needs for calories, macronutrients, and micronutrients

support general health throughout life and maximize longevity

provide the pleasure you expect from eating

promote social interaction and reinforce your personal and cultural identity

General Characteristics of the Optimum Diet

Variety. Covering all nutritional bases and minimizing the intake of any harmful elements in foods are important.

Freshness. The higher the percentage of fresh foods in the diet the better.

Unprocessed. The lower the percentage of processed foods in the diet the better.

Abundant in fruits and vegetables. The more fruits and vegetables you eat, the more protective phytochemicals you take in.

Calories
Depending on gender, body size, and activity level, most adults need to consume between 2,000 and 3,000 ...

Reviews

Media Reviews

Publishers Weekly

Now considered one of holistic medicine's most authoritative voices, Weil provides a common-sense approach to healthy eating. While much of this information can be found in other volumes, Weil illuminates the often confusing and conflicting ideas circulating about good nutrition....Despite Weil's emphasis on a diet of fresh fruits and vegetables, unprocessed foods and much less meat and dairy products than most Americans are used to, readers will notice a profoundly realistic observation of what changes they can readily incorporate into their busy lives. And they will be heartened to learn that they can eat nutritious foods and still get much pleasure from them.

Booklist

The short chapters outline the "worst" and "best" diets "in the world," mull over weight-loss dieting, advise on grocery shopping and dining out, and encourage personal cooking. Clarity, pertinence, and reasonableness again characterize Weil's writing, and a hefty clutch of recipes concludes.

Kirkus Reviews

From a familiar, reputable--if sometimes offbeat--source, a worthwhile discussion of how to formulate a healthy approach to eating. Weil doesn't look for easy answers, or absolute rules for readers. Instead, he begins by explaining the seven basic propositions of his own nutritional philosophy....Entertaining, thoughtful, and educational.